ACCUSER: MAYOR REPEATEDLY MADE UNWANTED SEXUAL ADVANCES

Mayor Bob Filner’s former top spokeswoman sued him and the city for sexual harassment Monday, saying he repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances toward her, frequently uttered crude comments and even put her in a headlock on several occasions.

Irene McCormack Jackson, who served as the mayor’s communications director from January to June, is the first woman to identify herself as one of Filner’s accusers since anonymous allegations of sexual harassment were made earlier this month. She told her story alongside attorney Gloria Allred, who specializes in high-profile cases involving powerful men and female accusers.

McCormack Jackson accused the mayor of making several sexually suggestive comments to her and telling her he loved her and wanted to get married.

The comments included: “I would do a better job if you kissed me,” “When are you going to get naked?” “Wouldn’t it be great if you took off your panties and worked without them on?” and “When are we going to get married? Wouldn’t it be great if we consummated the marriage?”

McCormack Jackson, 57, also said Filner, 70, would put his arm around her neck to pull her in closer to make those comments and twice tried to kiss her without her permission. She pushed him away on one occasion and asked him to leave her office during the second. She said Filner responded by saying, “You cannot kick me out. I am the mayor. I can go anywhere I want, any time I want.”

“His behavior made me feel ashamed, frightened and violated,” McCormack Jackson, a widely respected government official and former journalist, said at a downtown news conference. “I wanted to keep what I experienced hidden and compartmentalized. I felt that I could tough it out. However, my family and close friends noticed my anxiety and how different and uncommunicative I had become while I was working for the mayor.”

McCormack Jackson added, “I am coming forward today to lay the blame at the feet of the person responsible, Mayor Bob Filner. He is not fit to be the mayor of our great city. He is not fit to hold any public office. A man who lacks character makes a mockery of his ideas.”

No monetary damages were specified in the lawsuit.

In a statement, Filner said he was saddened by the charges made in the lawsuit and once again called for due process.

“I humbly ask that through this vicious storm of controversy, people take a moment and temper their rush to judgment,” Filner said. “I do not believe these claims are valid. That is why due process is so important. I intend to defend myself vigorously, and I know that justice will prevail.”

Filner has been under siege since July 10 when three former political allies came forward on behalf of several anonymous women who said they had been sexually harassed by the mayor. The accusations included unwanted kisses, groping and derogatory comments.

In the wake of the allegations, the city has implemented a policy that Filner isn’t allowed to meet with women alone on city property, a rule that will be enforced by his security detail and new chief of staff.

Filner issued a public apology July 11 for “inappropriate and wrong” behavior toward women and then proclaimed his innocence the following day.

The decision by McCormack Jackson to come forward could be devastating for the mayor. She is well-known in San Diego after 25 years as a reporter and editor with The San Diego Union and the merged Union-Tribune and then nine years as an executive at the Port of San Diego. Shortly after her announcement, political insiders as well as past and present colleagues took to social media to voice the belief that she is telling the truth.

“Irene has dealt in fact and not fiction all of her life. She does not create fiction,” said John Gilmore, a former colleague of hers at both the U-T and the port.

McCormack Jackson had worked as the port’s vice president of public policy before joining the Filner administration Jan. 3. She said she took a $50,000-a-year pay cut to become the mayor’s chief spokeswoman for an annual salary of $125,000.

McCormack Jackson said she accepted the reduced salary because she was excited about Filner’s vision for the city and wanted to be a part of a historic effort to bring change to City Hall. She said it turned out to be “the worst time of my entire working life.”

“I had to work and do my job in an atmosphere where women were viewed by Mayor Filner as sexual objects or stupid idiots,” she said. “I saw him place his hands where they did not belong on numerous women. I was placed in the Filner headlock and moved around as a rag doll while he whispered sexual comments in my ear. We did not have a relationship other than work. That is all I wanted and I never gave him any reason to think otherwise.”

Among the incidents McCormack Jackson described in her lawsuit:

• Backstage at the Jan. 15 State of the City address, she told Filner “Don’t worry, mayor, you will do a great job.” Filner replied: “I would do a better job if you gave me a kiss.”

• On Feb. 20 Filner was in an elevator with McCormack Jackson and a member of his police security detail. The officer was adjusting his handcuffs when Filner put McCormack Jackson in a headlock and said, “You know what I would like to do with those handcuffs?”

• A few weeks later she was in an elevator alone with Filner when he put his arms around her and said, “You know you are beautiful. I have always loved you. Someday I know that you are going to marry me. … Wouldn’t it be great if you took off your panties and worked without them on?” She pushed him away and then he tried to kiss her. She turned away and he kissed her on the cheek. He didn’t stop until another City Hall staffer got in the elevator.

According to the lawsuit, the final straw came in June while Filner was in Sacramento. Several female staffers told Deputy Chief of Staff Allen Jones about the hostile work environment that the mayor had created. McCormack Jackson said that while she worked for Filner his behavior had led to the resignation of five schedulers. At various times, three female staffers had been so upset by the mayor’s treatment they had to be driven home.

Jones, who has been friends with Filner for 35 years, raised the issue in a June 20 policy meeting. “You are running a terrible office,” Jones said according to the suit. “You are treating women in a horrible manner. What you are doing may even be illegal. You need to change your ways. You need extreme therapy.”

Filner replied: “Allen, you are full of s---.”

Jones then resigned. McCormack Jackson said she knew then that Filner wouldn’t change his behavior so she stood up to leave with Jones and told the mayor, “I agree with Allen. You are horrible.”

Filner asked her to provide one example of his inappropriate behavior. She referenced his “panties” comment, slammed the door and left.

Jones has previously acknowledged that he resigned because of the mayor’s poor treatment of staff.

According to the lawsuit, after McCormack Jackson quit the mayor sent a representative to meet with her. Further discussions, the suit said, resulted in Filner acknowledging he had been despicable toward women, promising a public apology and agreeing to get sexual harassment training. He then offered her a job as communications director of city operations, which she accepted because she had no other employment opportunity.

Praise for McCormack Jackson came from both sides of the political aisle.

Assembly Majority Leader Toni Atkins, one of the first Democrats to call on Filner to resign, said, “Irene McCormack is a respected professional in our community. I applaud her bravery in coming forward.”

Former City Councilman Carl DeMaio, a Republican who lost to Filner for mayor last year, said he’s confident San Diegans will support her and again called for the mayor to resign.

“I am so saddened that Irene was subjected to this demeaning and disrespectful behavior, and I admire Irene’s courage and integrity in speaking out,” he said. ”

Allred, McCormack Jackson’s attorney, said she received a number of calls from other women following the early afternoon news conference.

City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said the city will defend itself but isn’t on the hook for Filner’s personal legal bills because sexual harassment doesn’t fall within the scope of his duties as mayor. Filner could ask the city to pay for his defense but would need to get City Council approval. Six of its nine members have called on him to resign.